Revolution
by Fentir
Summary: A strange creature walks through a deserted world. Who is it, where did it come from and what happened to humanity?
1. Chapter 1

_In a world where machines rule,_

_and living beings are the ruled,_

_a cyborg will always be an outcast._

_\- Unknown_

* * *

He'd always been here, ever since his mistreated brain could remember.

He didn't know when or why he'd entered the world.

A world of pain and daily struggle for survival.

A world where the machines hunted the living and polluted the air.

His world.

He was a monster in every sense of the word. Years before his time there were others like him, living in partnership with a prospering humanity, fighting friendly battles, travel through a clean world without dangers. Today, both humans and his kindren were at the brink of extinction and retreated to hidden underground facilities to escape both the machines and their fumes. Nobody knew where or when the machines had appeared the first time. It's said some mad villain of old had started building them to take over the world. Who knew.

Back in the old days there'd been places of quick healing and recovery. Items that would even heal paralysis, burns, frostbite. Today, there was nobody left to heal the sick and injured or build these red and blue balls the humans of ancient used to keep his kindren safe from harm. The weak were left behind as soon as they couldn't keep up anymore. It was enough trouble to find food and resources, he guessed. Figured.

The monster looked down its body. What was left of it. In their struggle to fight back the machines, his creators not only cloned a long extinct creature, but implemented countless life-supporting, cybernetic things in his body until he was more machine than lifeform. He remembered the name they'd given him, but it didn't matter. Just the species name with a number behind it. Like the prototype of some experiment, one of many. They'd put hope on him. It didn't save them. When the machines came, the laboratory burned to the ground, the scientists and any devices that might've served his survival, with it. He'd barely survived this first strike when their EMP burned through the one device that'd produced power for his body, leaving him with depleting energy cells.

Today, he scavenged half-full batteries from broken down machines to restore them, every day. Like a stray dog looking for food. He knew inside their factory, he'd find chargers that could renew his own cells easily, but this factory was heavily guarded. Impossible to get in there, for a single monster anyway. Now there was nothing left than to roam the wastelands, hoping he wouldn't find the day where no dead machine crossed his path and life-support would break down, letting the last remains of his body die in the toxic air.

A few weeks ago, he'd found he possessed special abilities.

Back then, a machine had found his hideout. Ready to call for its companions, it had closed in on him, its clicking and surring motors menacingly growling at him, the visual sensors glowing an omnious red light as the thing approached. He had striked out at it, in a fit of panic and rage, unleashing a wave of blue light at the machine, which promptly exploded, destroying his hideout in the process. He couldn't know it was what the scientists of old called "Psyche"-attack or that he was one of the most powerful psycho-type monsters ever to exist. All he knew was that it saved his hide that day. It'd never worked again though, no matter how much he tried.

Trainers, as the ancients had called humans with monster partners, would've taught them new skills and unleash their full potential, according to their knowledge. Even if his creators had survived, scientists were no trainers. They couldn't have helped him grasp this strange power to turn it against his enemies. And as time passed by, he started to believe no one but himself could.

Today though, he didn't feel like training. Not even like going outside his cozy cave. Acid rain fell in streams since he woke this morning. Yesterday there'd been one of these lucky coincidences and he'd found a whole group of machines, incapable of moving or resisting, when he removed their lifeforces. Who knew what'd been wrong with these. They hadn't looked damaged at all, yet all they'd do was flinching and desperately trying to stand on broken limbs as the batteries were ripped from the corresponding sockets, leaving their dead shells motionless.

So he wasn't forced to leave. He could sit here all day, recharge his energy cells and hope for better weather before he ran out of stock. If it wasn't for that one sound cutting through the contaminated air. A cry, almost desperate and too near for comfort. The monster stood – joints snapping loudly into place - and stepped outside, following the wailing sound. The forests had long since died. So when he entered the woods, no leaves were here to keep the rain off. He knew he soon had to seek shelter, but that crying was so close now he couldn't just stop. When he finally did, he found a bundle on the ground. Too naked for a monkey, too well shaped for kindren. Soft steps brought him closer to the creature which had promptly stopped and just stared at him. It was alive alright. Drenched in poisonous liquid but vivid enough to stretch its tiny arms toward a total stranger, giggling when his paws took it up.

Was this a human? It was different from the humans he knew though. The humans he knew wore bright, white coats and lived in packs. Maybe other humans wore different clothes but they were pack animals nonetheless. So where was this one's pack? Maybe it was a trap and they were somewhere closeby, waiting for him to lower his guard? He looked around and snorted. No way humans would survive out here nor wait for prey in rain that could eat away even his armor. He decided to take the little creature with him. Wether it lived or died wouldn't depend on its resistance against acid anymore. Also, it gave him the strangest feeling ever since the laboratory burned down; a sense of companionship.

Back in his cave he found a dry spot where he unceremoniously dropped the bundly, which promptly resumed crying due to the rough handling. The monster stood beside it, then bowed down and gently touched the creature's belly. It was amazed and stared at him, again, and while it did, the monster felt overwhelmed by a sense of hunger like he had never known it. So powerful was the sensation, like an electric charge cursing through him, he stepped back in shock, hit the wall and sank to the ground, staring at the bundle which had resumed its tirade of hunger. How the monster wished he knew human speech so he could tell the creature to look for food if it was hungry! Even if he could muster a few human words, he knew there'd be no way to speak them. He was mute, probably thanks to the experiments. Even when in pain, his cries would be silent. It was as if the scientists had ripped out his voice – which, given their cruelty, they probably had. All but a whistle would leave his throat and he knew humans didn't communicate this way. They used their voice to form sentences, words, laugh. The creature wouldn't be understood and all he'd achieve would be hurting his throat. Besides – would this little thing even know what to look for? Or where?

If he didn't plan on letting it die, he would have to look for nutrition. To find such, he'd have to seek out it's kindren, whereever they were. He had to find the closest underground hideout of theirs and maybe let them take care of the bundle. But not in this rain – the naked creature wouldn't survive long enough. The monster settled down beside it, thinking. He couldn't leave it here either, in the cold. Almost instinctively his tail curled around the shivering humancub. Good thing they hadn't cut off that part as well, otherwise cold metal would greet the creature instead of velvety comfort. As he laid down to rest and was halfway sleeping already, he thought he saw the blue light again, surrounding them both in a protective sphere..

In the evening, the rain had died down. The clouds were glowing in their most vibrant green as the sun set, as if greeting the cleaner air, even if the higher spheres would always be polluted, for now every lifeform with lungs could breathe more freely again. As the monster stirred, he immediately noticed something missing. Where was the small human? It couldn't have gone far, right? After all, it didn't exactly walk on its own legs.

As he pondered on this, something else alerted his senses; a strange presence nearby.

He looked up; in one corner of his cave sat another human – more typical and a female – holding his companion! Immediately he stood, stomping towards the female, teeth bared in a voiceless snarl. But the human wasn't the least bit impressed, just lifted one hand holding something long that only could be a weapon and mumbled something in a threatening tone. The monster stopped, not really intimidated rather than calm and collected, turned swiftly and used his tail to knock the object right out of the hand that held it. The human seemed startled by that, screamed and held the smaller human closer to her, terror evident on her face. More voices called from outside the cave and the monster decided it was wiser to desert the place. As he was about to run, a pawful male creatures already blocked the entrance. The monster stepped back, unsure on what to do. The males seemed angry and scared at the same time, closing in on him, filling the space between the female, the small human and him, holding all kinds of sharp looking objects. He couldn't possibly fend of all of these.. In expectance of incoming pain he closed his eyes-

\- nothing happened. Carefully he peered through one eye to see the humans had gone. Not a trace of their presence left, as if they'd never been here in the first place. The monster sank to its knees, panting. His small human was gone. They'd taken it. Not that he hadn't planned to give it up to them in the first place, but the manner how it happened didn't sit right with him. By instinct he knew they'd be back to take the prey they'd left. He had to go, now. So he turned to pick up the few belongings he owned; Just to find they were gone as well. They'd taken it all; the beautiful, shiny rock (that, in fact and unbeknownst to him, was a diamond) he'd found in a dried out riverbed long ago, a few dirty, goldcolored round plates with pictures of ugly male humans and numbers on them and most important of all; his loot. The energy cells of the fallen machines were gone. Now the monster didn't panic easily. He didn't even then, since he knew his cells were still good and charged and would hold up for at least another day. It also was less panic than blind rage that started to fill his being. How dare they take what was rightfully his!

As he stepped out of his cave, he immediately found their traces and a silent grin spread across his features. The hunted would become the hunter. They'd rue the day they messed with him. He fell into an effortless trot as he followed the clearly visible tracks.

The environment changed as the monster tracked the human pack. Barren wastelands and dry forests were replaced by ruined buildings, broken streets and things he didn't recognise, fenced trees that had long since died, skeletons of humans and unknown, four-legged creatures. This must've been a florishing society once, the monster mused, not even that long ago. Now the area reeked of spilled blood and death, machine oil and burned concrete. He felt he really shouldn't be here and fastened his steps until the tracks finally gave out. He'd lost them on a patch that was too hard and too clean to leave prints so he started looking around for other clues. A lost patch of clothing maybe, a whiff of leftover scent, but nothing could be found.

He was half about to go back – still unsure wether he should return to his cave or start looking for a less known hideout – when a sound caught his attention. A cry. He knew this voice. Before he knew it he'd started running and stopped in front of a pretty rundown, secluded building, standing in the midst of a fenced yard which might've looked beautiful once, with grass and fruit trees and flowers everywhere. Now there was all but a single tree standing, stubbornly fighting the diseased air with a couple of crippled branches and brown leaves. The monster proceeded into the yard, always carefully watching if there was anyone who might spot his approaching form. Thankfully he reached the house undetected and put a paw on the half-open door, gently pushing it in.

A loud noise, smoke, blinding pain in his abdomen, burned flesh and the hard ground crashing into him was what he came to realise seconds after he'd fallen. He knew it probably wasn't a fatal hit, as the artificial organs could take quite some damage – he knew that from previous experiences and encounters with mankind – but the pain was there. Whatever hit him had effectively shocked his whole system, reminding him just how fragile his life could be at times. One malfunction of the dreaded technology these damn scientists implemented might just kill him.

As he tried standing – more or less successfully - he more felt than heard steps approaching, probably the one who shot him. Looking up the monster recognised a man of advanced age, his face covered over and over with black beard, gaunt, his eyes hardened by who knew what kinds of hardships. Most evident was the hatred that stared right back into the monster's eyes.

"What are you doing here, beast?! Get out before I lose my temper!", the man bellowed, once again pointing his gun at the monster who had barely made it to his knees and didn't understand a word the man said, just returned a toneless growl between bared teeth. This seemed to anger the man even more and he stepped closer, poking the gun right against his enemy's head.

"I'll fry you and feed my children with your meat, you monster!", the man growled as his finger grew tense on the trigger. The monster still couldn't move and desperately wished to be somewhere else. When the gun sent another wave of deadly magnetism, the target was already gone in a blue flash.

It was dark when he came to. Dark and cold. The pain running through his nerves indicated he wasn't dead though. But where was this place? Rock-hard ground beneath his prone form, the smell of home all around. Gathering his will the monster slowly stood, caught himself on the next wall and took a look around. It was his cave alright, but how had he gotten here? This man certainly hadn't carried him home, he'd rather seen him dead.

Then how..?

His head suddenly declared protest against his tries to unravel this mystery. With a vengeful pounding it sent the monster right back to the ground, where he rolled together, waiting for the wave to pass. As he did, he felt something new. Loneliness. This utter void that could only be filled by companions. Ever since he'd lost the small human it was all that had driven him. It had forced him to follow the human pack, even if it was plain suicide, had made him neglect his search for a new battery and even now this feeling made him miserable. He missed his companion, even if the small one was completely helpless and as speechless as he.

Then again, he wouldn't dare go back again. Who knew how many hits he could take until his lights went out for good. He wouldn't always be this lucky and just disappear when it got dangerous. Wait.. was that what had happened? The monster sat up when realisation hit him. If he could master this power, maybe he'd be able to regain his belongings and – maybe – that one? Maybe he'd even be able to finally get past the factory guards and never fear for his energy cells dropping off again? Worth a try anyway. But how had he done it? Last time was a life-threatening situation and he'd barely had time to think. Was that it? Would he need that man's help to unleash his power? More important; was it worth the risk? Next time that man saw him, that gun of his might prove fatal. Then again, if he didn't find replacement for what he'd lost, he'd die a worse death. This would happen sooner or later anyway, so maybe this was the perfect opportunity to grow..

Again he stood – his legs barely supporting his body's weight – and slowly made for the cave entrance, every step slow and painful, when a shade in the deep night in front of his home made him stop in his tracks.

"You must be hungry, right? That is why you attacked us, right?", said a voice and the monster recognised it as the female who'd taken the small human. She didn't run away, nor come closer. Her fear filled the air around her slim form. She held something, which was neither weapon nor the small human. Almost smelled like food. Old, probably half decayed food, but food nonetheless. She couldn't know he didn't need this kind of nutrition – otherwise he'd have starved long ago – but the gesture was well-meant. That female wasn't threatening him in any way, so the monster stayed where he was, just staring at the human, who was seemingly unwell.

"This is all we have.. please don't try to kill me, okay?", the female said and put something down a bit closer to the entrance, then stepped back. "I w-will feed you every night, so don't follow me, okay?" As she stumbled over her own words, she retreated further, then ran off. The monster looked after her, one question replaying over and over in his mind.

How had this human known he'd be here?


	2. Chapter 2

Weeks passed by.

The female kept to her promise and brought food every night. Where she got it and how she managed to sneak it past her pack mates was beyond the monster. He came to enjoy her visits, even if he usually buried the food once she was gone. It lulled the burning desire for company to a dull throbbing in the back of his mind. Maybe he could take that female's fear and make her a friend?

In daylight he continued to go scavenging. On the first day after his strange flight he'd stumbled across an almost empty battery, once belonging to who knew what machine (there'd been none when he found it), which he gladly claimed for himself and attached it to the corresponding charging ports so it would aid him in the search for more. It'd barely suffice for this day, but when he got home, he carried two more.

He'd make sure the female didn't notice them of course. As much as he enjoyed her visits, he'd still be suspicious she might call her pack and they'd raid his stocks again. It happened once, why should this be the last time? Humans were greedy after all. Next time they might just kill him so their own supplies wouldn't be further compromised by the female. No way he'd let her on about this secret.

She didn't make any attempt to enter his cave, always put whatever scraps she'd have just in reach and leave right away. He almost came to hate this scared look on her face whenever she approached the cave, as if he'd jump her and .. what? He couldn't eat her anyway. Killing them for fun wasn't in his nature. Different story if they threatened him, but even then he preferred fleeing over fighting. This was less cowardice than instinct. You didn't fight packs if you were on your own. This'd only lead to an untimely demise. Besides, he couldn't affort to get injured. That last encounter had slowed him down enough he'd barely made it back before dark for days to come. Anything worse was unthinkable. This was why he didn't even think of approaching the female while she was visibly scared of him. By now he was half-way recovered and might just get away, but if they chased him? Hunted him down like some lower animal or just kept pushing him until he dropped dead? No, the female would have to make the first move. He'd await her coming every night, laying down in the same spot, passively staring at her until she'd left. He was convinced she'd realise he wasn't a threat. Maybe they'd become some kind of kindren.

Then came the night where the female didn't show up.

The monster had gone out, trying to get a glimpse of her – in which's case he'd speed back into his cave to take his usual place - , but she was nowhere to be found. He was waiting anxiously for her, but when the first shades of dawn appeared outside he knew she wouldn't come. That day he'd found no machines. He was still good, well hidden stocks being filled to keep him going for days, but the loneliness, being absent for weeks, came back with twice the intensity and he found himself longing for her presence.

The day after crushed his hopes for good. Instead of batteries, he found her. Laying in the dirt, her blood covering the dusty ground, a deep wound reaching from her chest to the abdomen. She'd been gutted like a fish, likely by her own kind. Machines didn't take the time to kill slowly. You'd either burn to death or be crushed, but this deed was one of purpose. She had to suffer. Had they found out what she'd done? Was it even her own pack? He knew he should feel something, anything, but there was nothing. Things like this could happen if you betrayed your pack. She probably knew the risk all alone but had done it to keep them safe – from him – which was why they were wrong. He kneeled next to her dead body and touched her in a manner of saying both, good-bye and thanks, then stood to once again go to that place.

There was no room for revenge in his mind when he stepped onto the yard, no anger in him as he slammed the door open with a swift turn and a crack of his tail.

He ignored the screaming humans, small ones and big ones, males and females, as they rushed past him when he walked through the building, slowly gathering what was left of the stocks they took from him – and possibly some of theirs too for good measure.

Only one of them didn't leave. That one just stood in the center of the last room he entered, staring open-eyed at him. He was barely big enough to reach his knees and didn't seem frightened at all. When he approached the young human, it didn't retreat, just reached his small arms out to him and smiled, laughing at him. That voice! The monster stared unbelieving at the creature. It was the same human cub he'd found in the woods months ago. So it finally had learned to walk, good for him! He nodded approvingly and went to pat the boy on his head when he heard something behind him. A loud click, a boom, again that blinding pain, then darkness. He didn't even feel when he hit the ground. As his consciousness faded, he though he heard a wailing cry.

When he woke after what felt like an eternity and slowly gathered his senses, he realised this wasn't his cave. A different smell, like something rotting away, a stench beyond definition. Trying to move only resulted in another insight; they were bound by something cold and hard and still pretty numb from the shock. He couldn't move even if he tried hard. Around him was pitchblack darkness, not a spark of light that'd enable him to make out his surroundings and the only thing reminding him that he was in fact alive was his ever-painful body. Not exactly how he'd imagined the outcome of his raid. A frustrated snort was all he could utter, so he contented himself with holding still and waiting, trying to figure out this situation. There had to be a reason they'd kept him alive. If they'd wanted his meat – or other parts, as he knew humans sometimes killed for very specific reasons – they'd killed him right there. There'd been enough of a chance to do so after all. Even that first hit could've done him in. In that moment, he took the time to curse himself for letting down his guard. How could he assume they'd all just leave that cub behind? Of course there would be someone protecting that small, helpless human! Damn it all!

His thoughts were disturbed by the echoing sound of approaching footsteps, the odor of burning oil and fire, a light so bright that he had to turn away from it when it stopped before him.

"I told you to stay away, monster. Our kind doesn't take lightly to strangers who try to steal our children", said the male in front of him with a snark in his voice. The monster tried to look at him, but the light still blinded him, even if the effect was getting easier to bear. So he glanced at the man through half closed eyes, baring his teeth in a silent snarl. What was that human talking about? He certainly hadn't planned to take that cub. All he'd been about to do was giving them a nice scare, take his supplies and be on his way, but how was he supposed to tell that to anyone?

The man seemed to lose his patience, waiting for who knew what he expected him to do. An angry look crossed his features, as he hauled off before the burning end of the torch crashed into the monsters flank, burning skin and meat where the flames licked them. The man seemed pleased as he watched his prisoner suck in air sharply, but confused for the lack of screams. Every creature knew pain and would voice it when it got too intense. Why not this one? Again he took aim and burned the creature's other side in the same way, just to find it unresponsive except for a few painful, silent hisses.

He went on with the treatment until the creature didn't stir anymore, obviously unconscious once again. A testing kick against a fully limp leg was applied, but as there was no reaction, he left to think about his findings. A creature like this had to be of use for something.. he would have to discuss this with the clan.

As soon as he was gone, the monster pried open his eyes, panting from the sheer exertion of it and the new, burning pain searing through his body. This man.. he wasn't a scientist. Yet he had the very same eyes as those of old. The last strikes, they hadn't been for revenge or to make a point. They'd been purely experimental, he'd wanted to see something. What that was, the monster couldn't figure. But he knew he had to get out of there, as soon as possible. Who knew what that man would do to him, if that was just the beginning. He didn't want to become some kind of lab animal either. If it wasn't for these shackles holding him firmly, he'd probably be able to force his way out, but not like this. He felt he was in no condition for even walking, much less fighting, even if it wasn't for the burns.

While he pondered over this, he heard steps coming closer once again. Two sets of them this time. Quickly he let himself go limp again, willing them to think he was either dead or out cold at least. Both of them came closer. One of them was his captor, the other a female, at least by scent.

"Looks pretty much done for, Rowan. I don't think it will serve us well.", said the female and the monster felt something hard poke at his burned flanks, making it all the more difficult to keep up his act. His right eye lid flinched slightly and he dearly hoped they hadn't seen it. If they had, they didn't let on. The female continued.

"Even if it does seem powerful. And intelligent, if it was able to conclude we were the ones who took his stuff and even track us here."

"It's just a maneater. There's nothing intelligent about that!", the man barked and the monster felt him coming closer with large, angry steps, before the female stopped him.

"This one doesn't seem to eat anything at all, which is peculiar, Rowan. We found groceries originating from our labs in the immediate vacinity of the cave where it was first spotted. Untouched. No kind of animal fibres either, not even bones. It must've crossed where we placed Maria's remains, but our spies say the carcass was not bothered at all either. This is no maneater.", the female countered, but even while she was speaking, the man named Rowan growled in reply

"It even tried to kidnap little John!", to which the female shook her head disapprovingly.

"If it had wanted that, it had done so and we'd likely all be dead by now. It came to claim back what we took. But now its life is in our hands."

"I say we should kill it. Who knows when it strikes back at us! You can't control such a creature. It's a wild thing!", Rowan exclaimed then, stepping back, but the female kept calm.

"Don't worry. If it does, you'll be there to execute it, right? After all, you're our best man.", said the female in a soothing tone which seemed to calm the man down, as he snorted and left. The female looked after him until he was out of sight, then turned to face the monster.

"I know you listened. Don't try to fool me, you monster. I know who you are"

Carefully he opened his eyes and looked at the white-clothed female. She seemed familiar. Even her voice rang like an old bell in his ears.

"Seems you don't recognise me. Not surprising. It's been ten long years after all.." With that she smiled sweetly at the monster who kept staring at her.

"Still nothing? Weird. You'd think a monster recognises its creator.. Isn't that so, MewTwo?"

As his eyes widened in recognition of this name she grinned satisfied. "You will serve us now. We can't let such a technological perfection go to waste, can we?" She left him to ponder on that. Her swift steps echoed for a while, then he was alone once again.

If the shackles didn't hold him and his limbs were responsive, the shock would've paralysed him well enough. This female knew him. But how could she tell his name? The lab burned to the ground, didn't it? He'd even checked for survivors back then, everyone had turned out dead. Had he missed out someone? Damn. All this running, all this time.. now he was back in their hands.. In this moment, he really wanted to just give up, let them do to him what they pleased and submit to resignation. He couldn't run, even if he now escaped, they'd get him in the end. Unless..Clenching and unclenching his fists he stared ahead.

If he just had control over his power..

If these shackles would just dissolve into thin air..

If this wall would just break down and release him..

He didn't realise he'd been keeping up that clenching-releasing motion, neither did he notice the blue light as it formed spheres around his hands, only when the whole room was illuminated by it he looked up in wonder. In this moment the lights went out with a bright explosion of blending blue, leaving him in the darkness once again, exhausted and panting by the previous effort, finally succumbing to a sleep with dreams haunted by needles, bonesaws, brightly shining creatures and the smell of desinfectants and blood.


	3. Chapter 3

Wether it was still night or day; it was impossible for the monster to realise when he woke the next time. There were no windows here after all, no smells that would help identifying the time, no actual routine to orient by. Maybe he'd just been out for a few hours, maybe it had been days. As a matter of fact though, he felt even more groggy than before, indicating it was high time he restocked his energy cells. A hinge of panic crept up his spine when he realised he could neither go out and scavenge nor tell anyone. He started to pull on the shackles holding him, to no success. Even in full power he wouldn't have had the strength to destroy iron chains. Which didn't stop him from trying! He had to get out of here, now!

But even as he dragged on them with all his power, they kept the prisoner firmly in place. As his body slumped from the physical exertion, the monster seriously doubted his odds of survival at this rate. He couldn't keep wasting energy like this, there had to be another way. Maybe if he could concentrate, like he did earlier.. Just when he was about to give it a try, he heard someone coming and immediately fell into a faked unconsciousness. But this didn't even sound like the steps of an adult, nor did that one carry any sort of light with them. Tap, tap, tap came the small steps and a dull THUMP, a quiet sniffling, then more steps until they were close enough the monster guessed that person was standing right before him. It smelled like..

"Y-you m-must be hungry, right?", said a timid voice, that didn't belong to the small human he knew and he felt slightly disappointed, yet at the same time it made him wonder how two creatures could smell so alike. When he didn't answer the question, the stranger went on. "I h-heard you s-stole my little brother.. d-did you want to eat him?"

Again, no answer. How could he? Even as he tried to give at least some kind of sound to reply, there was nothing but his panting. Though the small human – who wasn't his – seemed content with that, whatever it had read into the non-existing reply, and its voice didn't betray fear when it spoke on. "M-my name is Jack, w-what's yours?"

When, again, there was no reply from him, something touched his leg and he flinched hard from the sudden, unexpected contact, after which whatever it was was quickly removed.

"S-sorry. I didn't mean to s-scare you..", said Jack and stepped back a little. "I j-just wanted to f-feel if you w-were there.. you don't t-t-talk much.."

_I can't and I can't even tell you that much, _the monster thought wryly, _Thanks to them.._

The small human was quiet for a few long seconds. Then he laughed. "Y-you don't need to b-be scared of me.. they s-say I'm the ti-ti-timidest around here.. But who is _them_?"

That confused the monster and his mind tried to process what just had happened. Could this human read his thoughts? He decided to give it another try.

_The humans who created me.., _he thought, unable to quell that feeling of regret, anger and contempt rising up. This seemed to scare the human cub, as the decent sound of a soft sniffling and a barely contained sobbing filled the air and immediately the monster cursed himself for not holding back more. But soon the small one calmed down and the sounds ebbed off.

"I got to go.. But I p-promise to come b-back tomorrow, alright?", he said and was off before the monster even had a chance to answer.

But the cub didn't come back.

Instead, the next morning – or later, according to the monster's perception – the female whitecoat returned, accompanied by two strong looking men carrying something that had resemblance with the shackles that still held him firmly. The female, holding some kind of flat surface with paper on it – a notepad - smirked.

"Listen up, Mewtwo. We're gonna put this on you and you better obey your orders while it's on you. Otherwise it'll be quite unpleasant – for you, that is. Understood?"

_What other choice do I have?, _he thought, before realising his mistake. The female just stared at him, mouth half open, before she wrote down something and nodded to the men, who went into action. With a click the collar was around his neck, two long chains connecting the monster with his captors. Holding on firmly to these, the men went to each one side of the monster and unlocked the shackles, after which the prisoner fell unceremoniously to the ground, incapable to catch himself on the fully numb limbs. He wasn't given time to rest, as they dragged him along no matter if he walked or not. When they reached the stairs though he thought it wiser to try cooperating and forced his legs to move. Step by step they climbed the stairs and the monster already thought it'd never end, when the light of day shone right at them; Through a locked door made of iron bars.

"Open up", the female called and the door just sprang open with a buzzing sound. The monster had seen such machinery on his scavenging tours. But the ones he'd seen had been dead for ages, for a lack of power he assumed. There'd be no way to get in or out unless it opened on its own. For now, it seemed to obey the female scientist, who led the group on with fierce steps.

Turned out it hadn't been daylight at all, but the cold, artificial light of neon tubes, illuminating the whole length of the hallway the men, the monster and the scientist were now following. Left and right the monster saw doors with numbers on them. Behind some he could feel life, other rooms contained creatures who made strange sounds, almost organic but mixed with metallic noises, and other rooms didn't feel inhabitated at all, yet a deep and regulary growl sounded from their rooms. They didn't stop there though. Their destination was a secluded room at the very end of the hallway. It was different, so much the monster knew by just looking at the door, which was – unlike the others – of some very heavy metal and had several locks. There was no number on it either, just a couple of white letters. His very core revolted at the thought of going in there, it felt like death was right behind this door. So he dragged the men with him as he backed away from it, forcing them to follow his retreating form under protest.

The female just looked at the scene, almost bored, took out a small, black thing from her pocket and pressed a button, watching as the intended target folded in like knife, shaken by cramps all over its body until it lay still, eyes glassy and panting from the pain it had gone through.

"Better you don't do that again.", the scientist simply said, putting away the remote control once again and faced the door to unlock it. It didn't look like the monster was going to move any time soon, so the men started pulling the heavy body into that particular room with close to no resistance this time. Once they were inside, the door fell into the locks with a heavy sound and they were swallowed by darkness until a light switch was clicked and the neon tubes came to life. Unlike the ones outside though, they were dim and of a more blueish hue. The monster more felt than saw himself getting pulled further into the room and only became fully aware of its environment again, when, once again, his arms and legs were cuffed and he was laying back first on some weird table that seemed to be made just for the purpose of locking creatures up on it. He probed the shackles that held him, but they were unforgiving, so he gave the female an icy stare, which was shaken off easily. She was holding her notepad again, an equally frostbitten grin gracing her features.

"We're not going to kill you, you know. It may hurt a bit though. You of course, to clarify it", she said, stepping over to a control panel with exactly eight screens and an insane amount of buttons and levers. She seemed used to it though, as her hands moved without her even glancing down for a second, her eyes fixated on the screens. While the scientist was busy, one of the men took up a needle – one of the kind that are meant to stay in after inserting them – and skillfully found a vein in the monster's right arm, put the point on the skin and less than gently pushed it into the thin tissue, piercing the vein below it. After checking if there was indeed blood coming from the canule, a quick and fixating bandage was placed. Then the man went to the still wildly typing female and notified her about it, after which she just pointed at a certain cupboard across the room. The man nodded and went there, took out something, returned to the monster with a weird metallic construction – an IV frame in fact – and left it there, just attached a bag filled with a strange fluid to it, a long, flexible tube leading from the bag down to another needle which was neatly placed inside the canule and fixated as well.

Finally, a couple of electrodes were put all over his torso. Their cables were connected to the screens, for whatever reason. The monster mused they'd probably try how much electricity his body could take before it'd give out and mentally braced himself. Finally the scientist returned with a sardonical smirk which just confirmed his expectations.

"This will feel just a bit weird, but you'll get used to it", she told the monster, who by now frantically tried to get off the table to run for his life, unsuccessfully. The needle stayed where it was and so did he. The female didn't seem to mind, just changed some settings on the IV, after which the fluid started travelling down the tube to disappear in his arm.

At first, the monster didn't feel different, only that he became kind of tired. His breathing turned into a barely audible huff, he felt his puls going slower and slower until it seemed gone. What he didn't feel was his body. It had turned into a clump of cold meat, fully numb up to his chin. Not important. Nothing seemed important anymore. The human's stressed voices became blurred and distanced as his vision turned black.

Suddenly he noticed he wasn't in his body anymore. In fact, he saw the humans, as they tried to do something with his motionless flesh. As the female told her subordinates to step back and pushed two heavy looking objects on his chest, he thought he felt a slight jolt, but it was barely noticeable. Like a minor headache. Or sunburn. He turned away from the scene and just passed through the door, followed the hallway once again. It was here that curiosity got the better of him and he went into one of the cells.

It was dark inside. Only two green lights beamed right at him; yet they didn't. It passed right through his transparent form. The thing that powered them didn't notice the trespasser and only walked back and forth in an unending cycle, always staring at the door that kept it prisoner. The monster came closer, feeling it was safe to do so and took a closer look. This thing resembled animals he'd seen in ancient ruins; four legs to walk on, a strong-built body, the head definitely that of a dog, but completely of metal. But there were in fact some parts that didn't seem machine at all. Golden-black striped fur was here and there, a light yellow mane fell around its neck. Even the eyes seemed alive, at least partly. They seemed to beg for something; death maybe. Next thing he knew, that thing cried a high-pitched wail of suffering and returned to its walk cycle.

It was here the monster decided to leave. He couldn't help that creature. As he explored the other rooms, he found there were many like that pitiful animal. Just like he'd expected, some were more, some less machine. In the last rooms he visited, he found perfectly healthy creatures. Some resembling yellow mice, others plain dog-like (with the same coloration that one first had), he even saw birds with beautiful feathers protuding from the back of their heads, calmly sitting in a corner, waiting for who knew what. By know the monster had recognised them as kindren. They were like him, mistreated by humans, misused for experiments. Some already doomed to a life of eternal pain, others probably still salvageable. But who would save them? He was – by all definitions – dead and could only watch them in silence.

A sudden noise outside the room broke this train of thoughts and he floated outside, just to see a large group of humans pass directly by him. They were accompanied by creatures like the ones he'd seen. But unlike the lab creatures, there seemed to be a fire in their eyes, fueled by determination and the will to do something. Do what though? Doors were opened and numb creatures released, some hesistantly following the group, others staying in their cages, too apathetic to notice. To the monster's surprise, the machine creature he'd seen first – and lots of its kindren - was amongst the group when they bust in the last door and surprised and angry calls sounded just before gun shots ripped through the air, prompting the monster to look what had happened.

He found the female scientist and her subordinates dead, their bodies thrown away carelessly. The group leader had bowed over the seeming carcass of a creature he couldn't name, stared at it for a while, then waved over two of his men and ordered them to do something. The monster watched as they removed both the IV needle and the electrodes and carried his empty shell off. Let them have it, even if there wasn't enough meat on it to satisfy a child. It was put on the machine creature's back – as this one was just large enough to carry him – and the group took off. As they did, the monster felt himself drawn to them, an invisible wire pulling his spirit, every attempt to resist proving pointless. So the monster decided to just let it happen and drifted after them.


	4. Chapter 4

A painful jolt broke the tranquilness the monster had sunken into. When had he fallen asleep? Opening his eyes, he started to realise the fact he was able to – thus alive - and secondly, he wasn't floating around anymore. He lay on a table, but this place wasn't the laboratory. The table was wood, not metal, he also found himself not in a prone position for once, almost curled up on his side. The reason for this were – as he found when he looked around hazily – cables sticking out from his back, all the way down from neck to hips.

Also, the monster started to realise, he felt awful. It wasn't actual pain, but a feeling as if his whole body had gone numb on him, yet he was freezing and shivering to make up for it. Where had they taken him? He couldn't feel anyone's presence around, but that wasn't too surprising. Despite his limbs being stiff and highly unwilling to cooperate, he somehow managed to sit up and take that place in.

A few chairs next to a wall that wasn't even quite one tail-length away, a cupboard with glass doors and things he didn't recognise – weird white shapes with colorful paintings on them, some bigger, some smaller -, also the skin of some unfortunate, striped animal on the floor. And then there was the large, black container right behind him, standing in a corner, lights blinking on and off as it worked who knew what magic. Every cable running from the monster's back went into this one, giving him good enough reasons to yank them out and get away from here – yet he wouldn't move. Something told him that machine wasn't doing any harm, might in fact help his survival. Since that voice hadn't ever betrayed him, he decided to let that thing do whatever it was built for and lay back down for his own sake.

Just as he was about to drift into a hopefully dreamless sleep again, the monster heard someone's steps approach. Not caring to sit up, he watched from the corner of his eyes as the room's door was opened and two humans entered. One he recognised as that raid group's leader. Behind the man came in a woman, who didn't seem like a scientist, yet had an aura about her that betrayed her knowledge of whatever her field of education was. The man wasn't young anymore, yet not old enough to be considered senior. It was obvious how he became leader; his charisma filled the room. He seemed dependable, powerful, smart. It would be hard not to trust such a man, which probably was the reason he could assemble such a large group.

The woman had closed the door behind her and addressed the leader with a whispering tone. Every now and then they'd look at him, keep on discussing whatever topic, even left the room after a while, just for the woman to return on her own.

"Are you aware?", she asked, as she held a flashlight in one hand, shining into his right eye, then the left. Satisfied with whatever she'd seen, she took the monster's right paw into one hand, looking at a ticking device on her other arm, just to gently put down his paw afterwards. He didn't even consider fighting. This human probably didn't want to harm him, else she'd have done so by now. He decided to trust her for now.

_Where am I?_, he thought aloud, startling the female enough for her to jump visibly.

"Telepathy.. Should've known", she said after having recovered from the scare. "Your kind always had a knack for this. To answer your question, you're at the resistance's main quarters."

Resist..? It didn't make sense. What would humans, the top predators, have to defend against, except maybe the machines?

"I can see you don't know us. We're the ones fighting back against the slavery mankind is put under. You see, it's not just the mons being treated like lower creatures. We all are just slaves to the system these machines have built. There's traitors from our own rows, serving them willingly as well. Our goal is to free everyone and defeat the machines, for good."

He must've looked lost, since the female made an unfeminely seeming snort-sound after a while and went on.

"You see, that underground laboratory we found you at was in fact under the direct command of the machines. I saw what they've done to my colleagues. It was my gun that ended their life. I see it as an act of mercy, don't you agree?"

It was a test, so much did the monster gather. He tried nodding, just to find his neck disagreeing with a pretty painful shock that went right down his spine. After it passed, he let out a breath he hadn't realised he'd been holding. The female looked at him, her gaze analysing.

"I wouldn't do that if I was you. Whatever they did to you, it left your ports damaged. We managed to reinstate most of them, but that one on your neck is still glitched. Put too much strain on it and it might short-circuit your whole system. Just lay still for a while. That machine over there will keep your energy cells charged until we have the materials to repair the damages. Once that's done, I hope you're grateful enough to help us out."

_Help you..?_, he thought and again the female flinched, this time looking annoyed.

"Suddenly yelling around in my head isn't helping", she growled – which almost seemed cute at her stature – and, after a display of obvious headache, went on. "You have the power to end this. We have the technology to keep you going. It makes sense for you to cooperate. You won't be forced though. We're not slavers. You can go whereever you want and do how you please, unless you interfere with our cause."

_Your cause.. You want to.. defeat the machines?_, he thought, this time trying to think more silently. By the female human's lack of flinching, he concluded it worked.

"That's right!"

_I want to help you. How can I?_

"Don't worry about that yet. You're in no condition to fight right now. Let us do our thing first. Then we'll see."

The monster didn't reply to that. He looked at that human, trying to figure out if there was any catch, trying to decide wether she was really trustworthy or if he just made a fatal mistake. As he was contemplating his fate, his weary mind slowly drifted to sleep.

When the female came back that evening, a broad grin on her face, the monster looked at her in alarm. How long had he slept? In here, his feeling for time was askew. It could've been days – or hours. But there were more important things at hand, as he was to find out.

"Very well, you monster. Turns out the exploration group found lots of spare parts and junk metal in that laboratory. You're in luck; they found just the parts we need to fix you. What they didn't find – and what we're out of – is anesthetica. Sorry about that. You'll have to endure some pain."

I'll be fine..

"Good. I say we start right away, the sooner you'll be ready", the female said with a hint too much enthusiasm and proceeded to prepare for the operation. When every inch of her arms was desinfected and her mouth and head were in white cloths, she returned, stopping next to her patient, seemingly waiting for something.

~ Where are these jerks? They should've been here long ago.. What's keeping them? God, I want to start.. I wonder how they did it.. ~

The monster couldn't keep from staring at the woman. Her thoughts had been as clear as his own to him. She could've said them aloud and he hadn't noticed a difference. She seemed oblivious to his reaction, still deep in thoughts. When her eyes took a certain glance, he seriously considered slamming her down and escaping. It was the same look, the very same one _they_ had .. Screw the defective port, he had to get out of there!

He tried to move – but his limbs just didn't. He knew he wasn't paralysed with fear, yet they did not even as much as flinch. Not even his tail, usually a trusty weapon, reacted to the brain's commands. The machine in that dreaded corner gave a loud beeping noise as his mechanical heart made attempts at jumping out of his chest, regaining the woman's attention. Her eyes, still pointy and sharp, looked at his unmoving form.

"Now don't get excited .. It'll be over before you know it"

_I .. can't move!_

"Of course you can't. Wouldn't help me if you suddenly started thrashing by reflex. The machine intervenes in your nervous system. It will numb the pain to a degree, but paralyse you in order to keep you from hurting yourself. Now, now.. calm down! You'll be fine."

She jumped back just in time before the machine blew up in one large fire ball. The force of that explosion was still enough to throw her against the wall, leaving her senseless, while the monster was safely protected by his own force field. When the air cooled down and the monster felt its limbs slowly regaining life, it plucked the cables out and climbed down the table, just to find himself unable to walk. With a dull THUMP he fell right next to the unconscious human, disoriented and panting. Only slowly he managed to stand on insecure legs and drag himself out of the room, always leaning against the wall.

_I didn't mean to do that.. how could this happen.., _he thought, uncaring if anyone shared his thoughts right now. A few humans ran past him, but were too distracted to actually notice. They'd likely heard the noise and came to see what happened. They would take care of the woman and only find him gone. He didn't want to taste their wrath when they found who had done this.

As he stumbled along the hallway, he found a stairway and decided to climb it. There had to be a way out of here, right? It wouldn't be an endless maze, designed to fool invaders and keep prisoners inside, right? Thinking this he felt his feet miss a step and himself crashing on the steps in consequence, shivering from shock and pain. To make it worse, his legs weren't just sluggish, but started to go numb again. If he could just fly out of here.. just.. floating..

The stairs slowly backed away from him.

Wait, were stairs supposed to do this? The ceiling answered his unspoken question with a dull thud to his hazy head. It was then the monster noticed he was in fact floating, just this time, his body wasn't half dead on some table. This wasn't a dream either. Now he just had to find out how to move.. maybe, if he was up there, at the end? He wanted to be there, right , he flew. Too fast, having too much velocity and being too surprised to even think of breaking, he shot right out of the underground dungeon, into the daylight, to find himself laying upside-down half on his back, half against some old building's wall, stupified. This never had happened before. If he'd known he could just.. fly like that.. At least he now was outside and free from these humans. He tried the same trick to pick himself up, but found it was no longer working.

Snorting in frustration he rolled over, planning on crawling away if need be, when a zapping sensation around the base of his neck made clear that moving – at all – wasn't a good plan. The female human's words came to his mind, her warning. But he couldn't stay here, prone and prey for each and every possible enemy! So he stood, forcing his legs to cooperate by sheer will.

That though was when the word turned black.


End file.
